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Sunday, November 4, 2012

CWA: Ohio Valley Hope

The cruise ship gently lowers over the lush rolling foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. You sip your coffee, relaxing at the table on the deck as you think about the events that transpired yesterday. A ghost. You had spoken to an actual ghost! While you had to admit the trip yesterday was quite interesting, despite the constant companionship of the US military, you were concerned about your own life back home. Would someone recognize that your double wasn't you?

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we will be landing shortly. Please gather your belongings and meet Tasha on deck. Thank you," Dalton's voice ordered over the loudspeaker. Dalton had been on edge since everyone had returned to the ship last night. You wondered what could have caused his attitude change? You place the thought aside, lower your empty coffee and grab your daypack. Thank heavens the ship had returned to the United States. You never thought you would ....

You paused as you peer over the side of the deck. This wasn't the terrain of 2012 United States. You smile to yourself. Once again the cruise ship had gone back in time. Where and when were you?

“Dad, those people that Bussy invited to call on us are comin’ up the
lane. You’d best get your good shirt on
for they look to me like awful fancy folks!
It’s a good thing we sent Bobby to town with the buckboard and horses
instead of the Model T, for all of ‘em wouldn’t of fit in that little
car.”

“Why, come on
in, Folks. It surely is good to have you
come to our farm. I’m Lena Gaffin,
Bussy’s mother. We didn’t know how you
were goin’ to get here in 1941 from 2012, but Bussy told us he could do it with
that time travelin’ business he learned in that book. Him bein’ sickly, if he isn’t playin’ the
mandolin, he’s listenin’ to the radio or readin’ a book, and he’s always doin’
some experiment or other that he’s learned in them. You were probably expectin’ Bussy to pick you
up at the train depot, but he’s ailin’ bad again. Bussy got the measles a few years back and
he’s had an awful misery in his chest and head ever since. All I can do is put mustard plasters on his
chest and pray it draws that misery out…”

“Mom. These folks don’t want to…”

“Bus, now you get back in that bed like I
told you!”

“Gee whillikers,
Mom. I just want to say hello!”

“Well,
alright. Come on over here with the
other kids for a minute. Folks, this
here redheaded feller is Bussy…now scoot on back to bed ‘til I call you for
dinner, Bus. This here is my husband,
Elmer, and that redheaded girl over there is our oldest girl, Roma. That white-haired boy hang doggin’ all over Roma
is Lee Greene. Quit your moonin’ over
Itty Bitty Boy, Roma and get back in the kitchen and tend to them skillets. We don’t want them chickens fried so tough
these here folks would break their teeth on ‘em.”

“Mom! Lee isn’t Itty Bitty Boy! You shouldn’t talk about him like that!”

“Don’t you sass
me, Girl! Now get out to the kitchen and
mind the skillets! I slaughtered three
big hens for our dinner, Folks. And
we’ll have corn on the cob and mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans. It all comes fresh from my garden…don’t
expect you get fresh on that big old boat, do you? I baked a batch of light bread this mornin’
and some apple pies and peach cobblers.
Lee, you could make yourself useful if you’d go and get some more wood
for the cook stove. That white-haired
girl fidgeting over there like a cat in heat is Reva. Settle down, Re honey. I told you that you can sing for everyone
later if we have time. These here folks
need to get back to their trip on that big old boat. We can’t expect ‘em to spend all of their
time on our farm. These two are our
twins, Dick and Bette. Dick, he’s our
only dark-haired child, and he’s an ornery one.
You ladies best watch out for he’s likely to try to steal a kiss or two
from you. Bette, she’s our shy one even
with that mess of red hair on her head. That
little feller over there with the red hair that’s the picture of his daddy is
Dale. And this is our baby, Dean. As you can see, he’s another redhead and we
named him Delano Dean for Mr. Roosevelt even though the president doesn’t have
red hair…don’t expect that matters none.”

“I‘m not a baby
no more, Mommy. I’m five years old and I
pway the mandowin, too, and don’t nobody better call me Dewano.”

“Deany, you and
the kids best be runnin’ on outside and play.
Dinner will be ready in a little while.
And Folks, you already met our oldest, Bobby. He’s home on a pass from the Army. Don’t you think he looks handsome in his
uniform? We expect Bobby’ll be comin’
home for good in a year at the most. Mr.
Roosevelt promised us mothers he wouldn’t send our boys into no war over in
Europe. It’s awful though what that no
account Adolf Hitler is doin’ to those poor people over there, isn’t it?”

“I suppose the folks
are awful weary from their whirlwind tour and would like to wash up before
dinner, Mother. My wife gets so excited
when she gets company and she forgets her manners sometimes. Just come on over here to the cistern pump in
our winter kitchen and wash up, Folks.
That’s natural rainwater in our cistern.
There’s mountain-fed spring water in the bucket there. Just go ahead and take a drink if you’re of a
mind to. There’s cups there on the
counter.”

“Now eat your
fill, Folks. There’s plenty more where
this comes from. That town rabble rouser,
Oscar Rover wasn’t hangin’ around at the depot was he, Bobby? It’s just disgraceful the way him and his
brother, Luther puts a blight on our little town…always drinkin’ that old rot
gut moonshine and causin’ a ruckus, and they’re not the only ones. A body can’t feel safe in town no more. What did you think of our little town of Peebles,
Ohio, Folks? I always tell everybody
that if you blink when you’re passin’ through, you’ll miss it.”

“Oscar’s in
jail, Mom. Remember, he’s comin’ up for
trial next week. I’ll be back at Ft.
Thomas then and miss the trial…darn it!”

“Bobby, you know
better than to talk at the table thataway.
I’m afraid our boy’s learnin’ some disrespectful language at that Army
training camp. Soon as we get done with
dinner, we’ll go to Serpent Mound, Folks.
I’ll drive me and Dad in the Model T and Bobby’ll get you all there in
the buckboard. I know…I know, Bus. You want to tell the folks about Serpent
Mound. Go ahead, but you know you can’t
go with us with that fever you’re carryin’.
And hurry up and finish your dinner and get back to bed, Son. You haven’t eaten enough to keep a bird alive
anyhow.”

“Well, Folks,
it’s really called the Great Serpent Mound because it’s the biggest and best
effigy mound in the whole wide world and it was built by Indians about a
thousand years ago. When you go out on our
front porch, look out over our valley.
That valley is really a star-wound that was caused by a meteor strike
over a hundred million years ago. The
hills way over on the other side are the foothills of the Appalachian
Mountains. The star-wound is about five
miles in diameter, and it’s one of the biggest ones in the whole United States,
maybe the world. Our farm is built right
on the rim of that star-wound. When you
get to the mound, Bobby will show you our farm way up here from way down there. You can see the house the best because it’s
white. And those smart Indians built the
serpent effigy right in the middle of that star-wound.”

“Tell ‘em about how
the serpent points to special stars in the sky, Bus.”

“You can go on
and tell ‘em, Daley. My chest and head
are hurtin’ real bad again. I think I’ll
just go on back to bed. Thanks for
comin’, Folks. It’s been real nice gettin’
to know you. I surely do wish I could
see what it’s like in 2012.”

To be eligible to win a signed paperback copy of GUARDIANS AND OTHER ANGELS, please enter a comment below addressed
to Linda Lee Greene. Please include your contact information so
that the winner can be notified.

This tour is based on characters from GUARDIANS AND OTHER ANGELS, the latest novel by best-selling author,
Linda Lee Greene. Reaching across the years and
striking a chord with people of today who are witnessing similar circumstances,
GUARDIANS AND OTHER ANGELS is
inspired by a dramatic true story of two Southern Ohio families during the Great
Depression and World War II who also struggled for their fair share of the
American Dream of hope, freedom and opportunity. Through dozens of authentic personal letters
written by the characters and included in the book, readers are given an
insider’s view of the hearts and minds and day to day experiences of a singular
group of people called upon to be counted among the ranks of the greatest
generation in history. Although spanning
the years of 1936 to 1941, the letters could have been written by modern-day
families and friends of troops and diplomatic personnel who, like their
forebears, are risking their lives in hotspots around the world to protect
their way of life and their country.

Linda Lee Greene was born on the rim of the famous star-wound
in Peebles, Adams County, Ohio known worldwide as the Great Serpent Mount
Crater. Mother of a son and a daughter, and
grandmother of two grandsons, Greene resides in Columbus, Ohio. An award-winning artist, an exhibition of
some of her artwork can be viewed at www.gallery-llgreene.com.

In the year of 2000, Greene wrote the original draft of the
murder mystery/historical novel, “Jesus Gandhi Oma Mae Adams,” a
manuscript that evolved into a co-authorship with Debra Shiveley Welch, and
upon its release an Amazon best-seller.
Greene has written two additional books in the Oma Mae Adams series, a
murder mystery titled, “My ‘Aumakua” [In Hawaiian, “A Spirit
Guide”], and a story of an expat-American who finds new meaning in
life, as well as love, while on a spiritual odyssey in Australia, titled Garden
of the Spirits of the Pots. Both
books are in queue with her publisher and scheduled for future release.

Greene’s current novel, GUARDIANS
AND OTHER ANGELS has inspired two other books on which she is currently
working, one of them a non-fiction sequel to the novel titled, “I
Received Your Letter …,” as well as Bussy Gaffin and His Champion
Roosters, a book for young readers.
Other than the book for young readers, excerpts of Greene’s current and
future books can be found at www.booksbylindaleegreene-llgreene.com.

Hi Lynda, It was a lot of work but so very fulfilling at the same time. Many of them are in the book. The balance of the collection will be in the sequel to Guardians and Other Angels. Thank you for responding.

Loved reading this and being reminded of your wonderful book, Guardians and Other Angels, which left me in awe days after I loved its last page. Thank you so much for hosting this exceptional author and her wonderful cast of characters.Paulette

Dear Paulette, Thank you for your kind response. It was such fun to create yet another scenario for my "wonderful cast of characters" as you state. I think I could go on writing about them for the rest of my days.

Linda, I felt as though I was out in the country and met a an interesting bunch of people, ones I would like to stay with for a long time to learn how we're the same and oh, so different too. I want to listen to them, eat their food, and learn all about Serpent Mound from their point of view. You brought to life a very interesting family. I'm glad I bought "Guardians and Other Angels." Mary Waterfield